1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image interpretation report creating apparatus to be used to create an image interpretation report in an image interpretation support system for supporting image interpretation made by a doctor after an examination image (medical image) is photographed which is used for a medical diagnosis by the image.
2. Description of a Related Art
In recent years, accompanying the spread of a medical digital image generation technique such as CR (computed radiography), MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), CT (computed tomography), etc., medical images acquired by examinations are managed electronically.
In general, when an imaging examination is made, before a specific diagnosis of a patient is made by a doctor in charge, an image interpretation of a generated medical image is made by an image interpretation doctor to create an image interpretation report in which an image interpretation result and finding are entered. Conventionally, even when digital image data is generated, a hard copy of a medical image on a photo film is used for image interpretation, however, accompanying the development of a high-definition image monitor (viewer), an image interpretation of a medical image displayed on a monitor is also made.
In such a case where an image interpretation doctor makes an image interpretation, it is convenient if disease candidate information of a patient as an object of image interpretation can be referred to. Such circumstances being taken into consideration, the applicants of the present invention have proposed a disease candidate information output system capable of outputting disease candidate information for an image of a subject (refer to Japanese Patent Application Publication JP-P2003-325458A). According to the disease candidate information output system disclosed in JP-P2003-325458A, it is possible to determine and output disease candidate information for an image of a subject by searching image data of a similar case in a case database, which stores a large quantity of case image data and diagnostic data related thereto, based on image analysis information of the image of the subject and disease information accompanying the image of the subject.
However, image data and diagnostic data are not always managed in one system (computer) and there are many cases where image data, diagnostic data, other examination information, etc., are stored in respective systems made and sold by different makers and vendors. The disease candidate information output system disclosed in JP-P2003-325458A has taken into consideration the case where disease information accompanies an image of a subject, however, it has not taken into consideration the case where disease information does not accompany an image of a subject, that is, disease information and an image of a subject are managed independently of each other.